Today's Opinions

The headline “Are there really 400 open jobs in Shelby County?” (Nov. 18) jumped off the page at me. I was especially intrigued by this article since my son, a recent graduate of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, is having a difficult time in finding a good job. I read the article several times, and if there are 400 open jobs in Shelby County, you couldn’t prove it by anything I read. One actual job opening, at Family Video, was mentioned in the article.

The agonizing pain of a tragic situation is eating at Shelbyville today, sending a corrosiveness coursing through the bloodstream that connects a tight-knit community and a strong family.

The death on Saturday of Trey F. Williams, 18, during an altercation with two Shelbyville Police officers that went horribly wrong has created a open wound of pain that threatens to seep beyond the aggrieved in this horrible situation and into all our relationships.

Congress has an opportunity this week to make a historic decision that would permanently change the culture of spending in Washington. Our nearly $15 trillion of accumulated debt is a threat to our nation’s economic recovery, our national security and the welfare of future generations.

We have already succeeded in changing the debate in Washington from “How much can we spend?” to “How much can we cut?” Now, we must go even further and pass a Balanced Budget Amendment.

Asked to write a composition titled "What I'm thankful for on Thanksgiving," 7-year-old Timmy wrote, "I’m thankful that I’m not a turkey!"

Maybe this Thanksgiving you feel like that little boy – that the only thing you can think of for which to be thankful is that you’re not a turkey. Perhaps your life isn’t going like you had hoped it would. Maybe your marriage is crumbling, your children are disobedient, your job isn’t fulfilling, and your car won’t start.

They gathered there, at midfield of a football stadium, before more than 100,000 witnesses. They joined hands, oversized men in black, white and red. Their loyalties and potential animosity had been deposited on their sidelines.

We now know that Steve Beshear gets another four years to run Kentucky. An overwhelming plurality of statewide voters thought he had done a good enough job to deserve an encore.

And there also was a strong endorsement in Shelby County, which was a small surprise considering that Republicans have dominated the top-of-the-ticket races among our voters for the past few elections.